First Bites

Over Thanksgiving, J-Bear took her first bites!

During Advent, our job has been to try to convince her to do it again ;)

I mean, how can you turn down sweet potatoes?

The first bites went over pretty well.

These days, J-Bear is not so sure.

 She's not shy about letting us know that she'd rather be drinking :)

Sweet girl!  We may just have to wait for table food!

Happily Ever,

Queen B

Hooray for Chick-fil-a

The impossible has happened in Minnesota……

….we have a Chick-fil-a!

We made our inaugural visit on opening day.  I think we'll be eating a lot more chicken.

It will be our pleasure ;)


Happily Ever,
Queen B

Chick-fil-a, oh how we've missed you!

We were recently down south to reunion with T's family.  Our first stop was key.

The mocha cookie milkshake was delicious, friends.  The nuggets were perfection, as always.  And check out the super fun kids door at the storefront!  

Those are some happy travelers!

Happily Ever,

Queen B

Beat the (dinner) heat

My car thermometer says it is 95 degrees outside today.

The fans are cranking to keep the house cool,

and I am responsible for making dinner tonight.

Warning:

Tonight is not the night to fire up the stove!

Caution:

We do not own a grill!

Attention:

What is a mom to do??!

Tonight I will be employing a dinner preparation tactic that I learned last year when we lived in North Carolina.  During the summer in NC, ninety degree days are a dime a dozen.  What was more, our oven could heat up our whole apartment in a jiffy.  

So, on hot days like today, we bring the pancake griddle out to the porch.  Thank goodness for exterior electric outlets!  Cheese quesadillas with peppers and onions are on the menu tonight.  I can sauté the peppers and onions right on the griddle, then fill and cook the quesadillas right next to them.  The kids can play outside while I cook, but beware little hands getting too close to the griddle!  By the time we are all hot and sweaty, we can head into our *cool* house to eat dinner.  Not too bad.

Pesticides and ADHD...We're buying organic

I buy a lot of organic produce for my family.  The latest issue of Pediatrics just gave me another reason to justify the extra effort and $ it takes me to buy organic produce.

A study just published in the journal found  that children age 8-15 with higher levels of organophosphate metabolites in their urine were significantly more likely to be diagnosed as having ADHD.  You can read the study as published in Pediatrics here.  What are organophosphates?  They are neurotoxic chemicals used as pesticides on many fruits and vegetables sold in the US (also in some residential pesticides).  As stated in the intro of the study, the major exposure to pesticides for infants and children is diet, and children are considered to be at greatest risk to these chemicals because their developing brain is more susceptible to neurotoxins and the dose of pesticides per body weight is likely to be larger.

Does this study conclusively say that pesticide exposure causes ADHD?  No.  More specific studies are needed to establish whether this association is causal and not just an association.  However, the findings do suggest that organophosphate exposure, at levels common among kids in the US, may contribute to ADHD prevalence.

So what can we do about this?  DON'T STOP FEEDING KIDS FRUITS and VEGGIES!  Organic produce is grown without the use of pesticides and is available in many of the grocery stores we buy from anyway.  Plus, the more we as consumers DEMAND organic produce, the more grocery stores will carry fruits and veggies grown this way!  Also, as summer approaches, farmer's markets are a great place to buy produce because many of local farmers do not use pesticides (just ask!).

Do you have to start buying ALL organic?  Probably not.  Some fruits and veggies are (on average) more contaminated than others.  You can learn more at Foodnews.org, the website of the Environmental Working Group or just click here for their handy shopper's guide  (I carry it with me to the grocery store so I know what to splurge on and what to buy regular):

What are the drawbacks of organic produce? 

1. It may cost more  

2. There may be less of a selection of out-of-season produce at various times during the year 

3. You may have to hunt for the good organic produce suppliers in your area.  

I have decided these are small prices to pay for healthier food, and I have also found that by doing a little investigating, I can find the organic produce products I need at very good prices at a few trusty stores in the city.  My favorite places to buy great quality, cheap(er) organic produce:

*Produce Exchange at Midtown Global Market  (they have AWESOME weekly deals)
*Sam's Club!  (Who would have guessed--the best prices on organic salad, spinach, and carrots in the city....now if I could just get them to expand their selection!)
*Rainbow Foods (believe it or not, their organic line is great and very inexpensive)
*Trader Joe's
*Minneapolis Farmer's Market (Open everyday now--be sure to ask about pesticides, then, go get those veggies!)

Big producers of baby food are also providing organic pureed foods now that are generally available at big stores, or I would make my own purees for my kids with organic apples, peaches, pears that I bought from the store.

We can make a difference.  Remember, we vote 3 times everyday with the food we buy and eat.

Eating well on a food stamp budget?

T sent me an interesting article today, asking the question of just how well a family of four could eat on the average 4-person food stamp alotment of $68.88/week.  Remembering that food stamps are intended to supplement a family's food budget and not be the sole allotment, he AP asked two chefs and the editor of my favorite food magazine (Everyday Food by Martha Stewart!) to plan out 7 days of meals for a family of four with that budget.  I read with great interest, because I am always looking for ways to flex and stretch our food budget in better ways to get to the end of the month!

You can read the full ABC News article here.  I found several points interesting:

-The chef experts tried to stay within budget while still staying true to their nutritious, health-conscious menu ideals.  They did this to varying degrees of success, often going over budget rather than sacrificing nutrition. 
-Overall they were all able to come up with what sounded like reasonable week meal plans that were heavy on fresh produce, modest on meat and strong on whole grains and legumes and dairy--all of which sounded pretty good to me.
-The experts noted how much advance thought and work went into planning the menu, shopping and preparing the made-from-scratch meals they proposed.  They acknowledged that this would be a hard thing for many families, especially with two working parents, erratic schedules or less knowledge about home cooking. 

The article made me realize again just how much organization, education (both about nutrition, cooking and even math!), planning and just plain work goes into preparing meals for a family every week.  Whew!  I sort of got tired just reading the article--mostly because I know the feeling!  But it also made me appreciate how families need more than just money to succeed in putting good food on their table.   Wouldn't it be cool if cooking and meal planning resources were more available to families in need?  Something to think about.

Happily Ever,
Queen B

Avoiding High Fructose Corn Syrup

No matter what specialty of medicine I end up practicing once I graduate medical school, I will be confronting the epidemic of obesity that has overwhelmed America and its devastating health consequences. Partly for that reason, and partly because I want to promote healthy eating for my kids, T, and myself, I am always interested in new studies on healthy eating. I will try to post my finds and tips here as they come up.

I just came across an interesting study published by a group of Princeton researchers (hooray, alma mater!) on high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). You can read a summary of the study here or read the abstract in Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior . The study found that Rats who had access to high-fructose corn syrup gained significantly more weight than those with access to table sugar, even when their overall caloric intake was the same. High-fructose corn syrup is a processed sweetener used in place of sugar almost ubiquitously in commercially processed foods--everything from soda to fruit juice to yogurt to tomato soup. Now to be fair, the nutritional peril of HFCS compared to plain sugar (sucrose) is far from conclusive: a study published in the journal Nutrition in 2007 compared short-term HFCS v sugar consumption in lean women and found no difference in measured body metabolic responses. The American Medical Association has done reviews of medical literature in the past and has stated that " it appears unlikely that HFCS contributes more to obesity or other conditions than sucrose" but calls for more independent research on the issue. Perhaps this new Princeton study will affect some thinking, but the controversy remains.

Based on research I have read, my conclusion is that HFCS is worth avoiding in place of sugar when possible, if for no other reason than most high calorie foods commercially available use HFCS. Last fall, I decided to make an attempt at removing all HFCS products from my shopping list, instead opting for products that use sugar or making my own versions from scratch at home. First, I was amazed at how many of the "healthy" foods I was buying used HFCS: my yogurt, my pasta sauce, my granola bars, my cereals, the kids crackers, the list goes on and on. I have managed, with some hunting, investigation and habit-changing, to find non-HFCS substitutes for all my favorite products, for about the same price or cheaper, in some cases. Dannon natural yogurt in place of yoplait, Cascadian Farms Organic granola, bars and juices (often on sale at Target or our Rainbow grocery store!) in place of Nature Valley or Quaker Oats, etc. The results have been more fresh fruit and veggie snacking, more home-made foods in our picnic lunches, and (this is just my biased opinion) better satiety for all of us. I am open to changing my mind, but for now HFCS remains on my "try not to buy list."

Happily Ever,

Queen B